Asiago Cheese with Glazed Cipolline Onions

This cheese course is one I frequently serve to guests at home, and every time it's enthusiastically received. Asiago is a little softer than aged Parm, with a nutty, sweet flavor that is gorgeous with glazed onions. I also find it's a fantastico red wine cheese, and goes quite nicely with a dessert Sauternes.

Preparation

1. Bring a large saucepan of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook the onions, with their skins, over high heat for 2 to 3 minutes, just until they begin to soften. Drain and set aside to cool. When cool enough to handle, slice off the root ends and remove the papery onion skin; leave whole.

2. In a sauté pan, mix the sherry, raisins, honey, 3 tablespoons water, the butter, orange juice, and thyme. Add the onions and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer, cover, and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, until the onions are tender when pierced with a small sharp knife. Adjust the heat as needed to maintain the simmer.

3. Remove the cover, season to taste with salt and pepper, and simmer for 2 to 4 minutes longer, or until the sauce reduces almost to a glaze. Stir the onions occasionally so they color evenly. Remove from the heat and let the onions cool slightly in the pan. Stir in the vinegar and set aside to cool to room temperature.

4. Cut the cheese into four equal pieces and put each on a plate. Mound the onions next to the cheese. Serve with a baguette slice.

From Fantastico by Rick Tramonto, Mary Goodbody, and Belinda Chang Copyright (c) 2007 by Rick Tramonto. Published by Broadway Books.

Rick Tramonto, the executive chef/partner of Tru in Chicago, was named one of Food & Wine's Top Ten Best Chefs in the country in 1994 and selected as one of America's Rising Star Chefs by Robert Mondavi in 1995. He has also been nominated four times for the James Beard Award for Best Chef in the Midwest, winning the award in 2002. Tru, which opened its doors in May 1999, was nominated for the 2000 James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant and named one of the Top 50 Best Restaurants in the World by Condé Nast Traveler. Tramonto is the coauthor, with his partner Gale Gand, of American Brasserie and Butter Sugar Flour Eggs.

Mary Goodbody is a nationally known food writer and editor who has worked on more than forty-five books. Her most recent credits include Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Companion, The Garden Entertaining Cookbook, and Back to the Table. She is the editor of the IACP Food Forum Quarterly, was the first editor in chief of Cooks magazine, and is a senior contributing editor for Chocolatier magazine and Pastry Art & Design magazine.

Tim Turner is a nationally acclaimed food and tabletop photographer. He is a two-time James Beard Award winner for Best Food Photography, winning most recently in 2002. His previous projects include Charlie Trotter's Recipes, Charlie Trotter's Meat and Game, The Inn at Little Washington, Norman's New World Cuisine (by Norman Van Aken), Jacques Pepin's Kitchen, and American Brasserie.

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Reviews

A marvelous recipe. BUT EVEN BETTER, as a side dish which is cooked ahead, then transferred to an ovenproof serving dish with the cheese on top and run under the broiler for a few minutes before serving.

Made this for our Christmas Appetizer....EVERYONE
RAVED! This is hands down, one of the BEST apps
we've come across in a really, really long time.
Definitely worth finding real cippoline onions (I used
the white ones, not the red ones). Seems unreal
that you could eat a whole onion, but it's definitely
possible! Great, great recipe! Thanks!